walmart martinsburg wv

Now maybe I should start at the beginning. You see, when you make the decision to begin receiving your social security benefits, you are given the option of direct deposit, a check or they will deposit you money in a bank and send you a handy debit card. My first mistake was believing that any bank chosen to work with the Social Security Administration must be suspect and potentially rife with under the table payoffs, etc. Kick backs are an essential part of large government contracts. It is not how well you do your job, it is how much largess can you spread around to the people making the decisions.

Ralph Babb

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Comerica Bank

(He does look tired, but then, I doubt he sleeps at night)

Every month, the Social Security Administration would deposit my monthly benefit (you know, the money I paid in every year before I was 62). I would use the card for personal expenses and business expenses. It was easy to keep track of where the money was going. I could check the account on-line anytime.

For awhile, these bums had me fooled.

Let’s fast forward to July 4th weekend in 2014. My wife has a friend that invited us to join them for a camping trip in Assateague, Maryland. I had never been camping and thought it would be a fun thing to do. It was. Had such a relaxing time that when she suggested we do it again the following weekend to celebrate my birthday, I immediately agreed.

Stay with me. On July 10th, I stopped at Rodman’s Discount Gourmet and purchased some Brie for the upcoming weekend. I then went to Ranger Surplus on Hungerford Drive in Rockville, MD and bought a shovel for the camping trip (I had learned that one needs a shovel when camping at the beach). I used my Direct Express (Comerica) card to pay for the purchase. At the Ranger Surplus store, the machine jammed and I was not given a receipt. I then went across the street to the Great Wall Supermarket and bought can of Cafe Dumond coffee for the trip.

So far, so good. I left the Great Wall store and drove home at 1:52.

The next morning, I played a round of golf with friends at Gunpowder Golf Course. My wife came home and we left for the ocean at around 5pm. We got to the Food Lion in Ocean City at around 7:30 pm. I used the card to purchase wood for the campfire at that time.

It was a great weekend. On Tuesday, around lunch time, I attempted to purchase an app for my iphone. The purchase was denied. I went to the computer and signed into my account. You can not imagine my surprise to learn I had no money left in the account.

It seems that the card (well not the actual card since it was in my wallet throughout this ordeal), had been used at the Walmart in Martinsburg, WV at 4:28 for a purchase of $52.75. I did not drive to Martinsburg, WV. I am not sure I have ever been to Martinsburg, WV. I know I have never been in the Walmart in Martinsburg, WV. According to Google maps, it is about a two hour drive from Rockville. Oh, it gets better. The card was used again at 4:29:46 in the same Walmart for a cash purchase of $50.00. At 4:30:19 it was used again for a purchase of $50.00 in the same Walmart. At 4:56:15 it was used at Wendy’s #0451 Q2 in Martinsburg, WV for a purchase of $4.84.

I was working during this time in Washington DC. I finished work and stopped at Hungry Howies in Derwood, Md and bought a pizza for $5.30 at 10:30:23 pm.

While I was sleeping, at 00:23:04 (just past midnight) the card was used at a Pilot in Hagerstown, Md for a $20.00 purchase. It was used again at the Pilot at 00:23.25 for another $20.00 purchase ( I think that is 21 seconds later), then it was used again at the Pilot at 00:25:01 for a purchase of $11.63. At 00:27:29 it was used one more time at the Pilot fora cash purchase of $21.19.

My round of golf shows up at 7:51:24 on the 11th in Laurel, Md. We teed off at 9:00 am and finished around 1:00 pm or so. At 10:25:02 the card was used at the Walmart in Martinsburg, WV for a cash purchase of $34.83. At 10:33:43 it was used in the same Walmart for a cash purchase of $50.00. At 5:06:46 (while I was driving to Ocean City) the card was used at a McDonalds #32086 in Martinsburg, WV for a cash purchase of $15.44. At 5:45:02 the card was used in the Walmart in Hagerstown, Md for a cash purchase of $60.72.

Here is the thing that baffles my mind. How could I possibly go from the Walmart in Hagerstown to the Food Lion in Ocean City in less than 2 hours? It is at least a three and one half hour drive according to Google maps.

I called the credit card company and was walked through the process. They sent me a form to fill out to the best of my ability. I filed a police report with the Montgomery County Police Department ( I live in Montgomery County). I was told it was a level one fraud investigation and it would take a bit of time to check out my story.

So today, I receive a letter from Christine B in the Fraud Services Department sharing that “During our investigation we found a conflict in the information provided by you and information resulting from our research. Based on this information, we cannot confirm that fraud occurred. They go on to suggest I report the incident to my local law enforcement (interesting, the police report was with my initial documentation) or contact the merchant directly.

OK………..I call BULL SHIT.

THIS IS A BUILDING THAT HOUSES THIEVES.

It will not change the world. Those that have read this far may say, damn that’s rough. No, it is not rough. It has only provided me with a mission. I will harangue congress to kill the deal. I will share the story often. I will delight at every misfortune that falls on any of the the people running this corrupt bank. I will ask friends to keep it mind.